Ecosystem, with rich volcanic soil that makes them
some of Sumatra’s most productive forests.
From observations of Bornean orangutans, it was
thought that orangutans were mostly solitary apes. But
here in Tripa’s swamp forests at least 3,000 Sumatran
orangutans once lived at densities of 8–10 per square
kilometre, the highest in Indonesia. They used and
invented tools on a daily basis, passing on learned
skills to fellow orangutans, exhibiting complex social
and cultural behaviours seen nowhere else.
TURNING THE TIDE
Twenty-five years ago the swamp forests at Tripa
comprised 60,000ha of the most biodiverse rainforest
in South-East Asia. Today, with its swamps draining and
much of its native forest cover destroyed to make way
for oil palms, no more than 200 of Tripa’s remarkable
orangutans survive in just 5,000–9,000ha of remnant
forest. The scientific consensus is that a group needs to
consist of at least 500 individuals to have enough genetic
variability to ensure a viable population.
As forest is torched to provide land for oil palms,
the oxidation of billions of tonnes of carbon stored in
Sumatra’s ancient peat-swamps has led to Indonesia
becoming the world’s third-largest producer of
greenhouse-gas emissions. In autumn 2015 the
forest fires were especially severe due to unusually
dry conditions, exacerbated by a particularly intense
El Niño climate event.
But I was not visiting the Tripa swamp forests to
mope – I was there to report on much-needed success
stories. After protracted legal challenges mounted by
local community and environmental groups, illegal
permits granted to palm-oil companies are at last
being cancelled. Peat-swamp forest that was damaged
by illegal burning is being restored, funded by huge
fines, while more cases are due before the courts.
The battle is not lost. Organisations such as the
OIC and SOCP are dedicated to ensuring that the
‘red ape’ survives on this spectacular island. Visiting
ecotourists have a key role to play by helping fund
their vital work. So I am hopeful that the male
orangutan I saw rescued by the HOCRU vets will live
to see a brighter future for his species. ßORANGUTANS
r5IF6,CBTFE
7FOUVSF'PSDFBOEUIF
4XJTTPSHBOJTBUJPO
1BO&DPBSFXPSLJOH
UPHFUIFSUPPGGFS
HSPVQTUIFPQQPSUVOJUZ
UPUBLFQBSUJO
4VNBUSBOPSBOHVUBO
DPOTFSWBUJPO
5IFàSTUUSJQTSVO
JOXXX
WFOUVSFGPSDFDPVL
XJMEMJGFDPOTFSWBUJPO
QSPKFDUTTVNBUSB
r5IF4VNBUSBO
0SBOHVUBO4PDJFUZ
PSHBOJTFTGVOESBJTJOH
+VOHMF5SFLT
XXXPSBOHVUBOTTPT
PSHWJTJU@TVNBUSB
r4FWFSBMUPVS
DPNQBOJFTWJTJUUIF
#VLJU-BXBOHJO
OPSUIFSO4VNBUSBUP
TFFXJMEBOETFNJXJME
PSBOHVUBOTXXX
SFTQPOTJCMFUSBWFMDPNHOW TO VISIT
SUMATRA’S
ORANGUTANSAbove: a HOCRU team releases an
orangutan – one of the lucky ones.
Sadly some of the apes they rescue
can never return to the wildDAVID HIGGS is a writer and photographer who has often visited
Sumatra to document the plight of its orangutans.